Background Music during sessions [Archive] - Wizards Community

Background Music during sessions [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Baron Stoonir Fel
03-08-05, 06:58 PM I have found that having some background music, espicially with the use of a remote to accent what is going on in the session can be a real good investment. I have had such sucess with it that i have had requrests for burned cds full of whatever random music i decide to use for each section. And because the songs tend to have certain tones and beats to them the players find that they are able to get more into the game mentally and thus have more fun.

A list of what i am usually playing:
Action scenes: Streamline (system of a down), goodbye (SR-71), Reise Reise (Rammstein), Opening Sequence (Final Fantasy VIII), Tenth Man Down (Nightwish).

Calm secenes: Final Fantasy Theme Music, daft punk, piano, ambient

So what is everyone else listening to?
LordSin
03-08-05, 07:10 PM http://www.midnightsyndicate.com/dd.htm

'Nuff said.
Denihilist
03-08-05, 07:13 PM I listen to the Warcraft 3 and Diablo 2 soundtracks they really set the mood.
Otto the Bugbear
03-08-05, 07:16 PM Many movie soundtracks have great mood music for D&D. The ones I use most often are...

Conan the Barbarian soundtrack
Bram Stoker's Dracula soundtrack
Braveheart soundtrack
LotR soundtracks

Other than that, some good rock and roll fills the rest of the playlist.

Cheers

Otto :)
Johnny3D3D
03-08-05, 07:20 PM "Down To The River To Pray" by Alison Kraus is a good song for a holy song; it works well if your party is in a church or some other similar setting.

"This Is War" by Smile Empty Soul seems to set a good tone for a build up to a conflict.

Also, the song performed by Breaking Benjamin on the soundtrack for Halo 2 seems to work well.

Oh, and one more I like is a song called "Whatever" by Our Lady Peace.
FineasBoggs
03-08-05, 07:39 PM Personally I use the musics from Neverwinter Nights and Baldur's Gate. It's funny when one of the players says,"Hey, I know this, it's when....."
Fixxxer
03-08-05, 09:12 PM I don't generally have background music during my games unless the players specifically ask for it. I do, however, utilize a lot of music while I brainstorm and design game-related material.

I agree that Midnight Syndicate is awesome. I've got all of their CDs.
The soundtracks to Conan the Barbarian, Conan the Destroyer, Gladiator and Pirates of the Carribean all make for good all-around music.
The soundtracks to Children of Dune, Dune, The Passion of the Christ and Blackhawk Down all make for really interesting desert-style music (my homebrew is 30% desert terrain).
The soundtrack to Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain as well as the CDs Karma (by Delerium) and The Box (by Orbital) make for really good "people" music. What I mean by this is that I find they're best utilized when I'm working on city creation, inter-army conflicts or possibly political ideas.
For soft, "feel-good" background music, I like to use the Soundtrack to the game Myth 3. Sometimes, I use a really nice Chant CD I have, but since I also play it to help me sleep when my insomnia kicks in, it can occassionally be a detriment (as it makes me tired).
Laranis Callirr
03-08-05, 09:16 PM I use, and have played with the following soundtracks:
- Neverwinter Nights
- Silver (the game)
- Baldur's Gate II
- Conan the Barbarian
- Gladiator

I've also used a few specific albums for a couple of sessions. When my party went to the Shadow Plane, I used the soundtrack from the movie Solaris , and when they were in the Dire Woods, the soundtrack from Phone Booth . The Solaris soundtrack was very well recieved, I must say. :D
Black Knight Geno
03-15-05, 01:55 PM I personally perfer music that scares the PC, like
'Let the Bodies Hit the Floor' (PCs have learned this DOES NOT apply to the villians) :evillaugh
Tazi Swiftblade
03-15-05, 02:32 PM Most anything by Hawkwind
The first three Blue Oyster Cult albums

Hell, they both co-wrote songs with Michael Moorcock. How much more D&D appropriate can you get?
lifespeed
03-15-05, 03:05 PM I have a big honkin' playlist I created for a steampunk game I never ran that I let play in the background at my last session. There were times that the mucis didn't fit the scene at all, but it didn't seem to really hurt it any either. It's eight and a half hours long or so and consists of:
Pretty much all of Fellowship of the ring, the Count of Monte Cristo, the 3-disc import Chrono Trigger soundtrack, Sleepy Hollow and some stuff from Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, Braveheart, the Bourne Identity, and Serial Experiments Lain, plus the tracks they released on the WotC site from Sharn: City of Towers. Really great stemapunk music, but pretty good for D&D too.

Here's a question though, how does everybody handle their music? I just let the playlist go the other day and that seemed to work, but I really want to figure out a good way to trigger certain tracks for certain scenes without having to get up and walk over to the CD player or the computer. Any suggestions?
MasterRookie
03-15-05, 03:19 PM This makes me think of the adjustable light I have. Its really great for simulating the amount of light in an area and adds some realism.
ShadowDragon8685
03-15-05, 03:40 PM Depends on what your group's like.

Also depends on what the mood is, too. Obviously, thrash rock is not going to be right for seducing the princess, but it might be what the doc ordered for the fight with the boss.

Personally, since I play over OpenRPG, I just ajust the music on my computer on the fly, to fit what I'm feeling for the current situation. In a fight? Maybe some of the battle music from NWN. It could just as easily be some thrash metal, or some 16 Volt, or some Nightwish.
Dreaming_in_the_void
03-15-05, 03:42 PM I tend to go with classical and instrumental scores. Often soundtracks.

Ennio Morricone has been my favorite gaming music for the past month or so.
Greldinard
03-15-05, 03:44 PM Normaly I don't use music, their is noice enough with four players. However, I once did a not so serious adventure heavely based on Diablo I. I played the game's music when they entered the dungeon. I added to the admosphere.
Ekranoplan
03-15-05, 03:47 PM I use Diablo 2, it can pretty much go with anything unless you are in a nice happy town,

Baldur's Gate II sound track is great, especially the tavern music!

Escaflowne for big, epic battles.

Just some generic combat music I got from a friend.

And then there is a myriad of other music for combat, being in a town, big city, creepy dungeon crawl, et cetera that I have pulled from various games and movies that I use. All in all, I probably have about 19 hours of music.

And then we all have random music we sometiems put in when we dont feel like ( or care) about back round music. This can consist of anything from Hungarian techno to barbarian black metal ( or even just metal) J-pop and everything in between. Basically, anything.

Kamelot and Bal-Sagoth are two great metal bands for the purpose of fantasy.

Oh, if anyone wants the Diablo 2 or Baldur's Gate II soundtrack let me know and I shall post the links.
Dreaming_in_the_void
03-15-05, 03:53 PM Oh, if anyone wants the Diablo 2 or Baldur's Gate II soundtrack let me know and I shall post the links.

Please do, assuming that doing so doesn't break any sort of copyright laws.
Ekranoplan
03-15-05, 05:19 PM I dont think it should, they were officially released.

Diablo 2 http://www.diabloii.net/files/sounds.shtml#d2xbliz

It would seem my Baldur's Gate II link is not working, but I first got the link from the BioWare forums so that would be a good place to look.

The thing about Baldur's Gate II sound tracks is that they are all very short (few exceed 2 minutes in length) so you would have to lengthen them (atleast I felt the need to). Not exactly the most complex thing to do, provided you are enlightened in the ways of the machine.

Ofcourse, you dont really need to do anything like I described, just my personal preference.
prosopis
03-15-05, 07:12 PM For those of you who are operatically inclined, the easy answer is: Wagner's Ring Cycle. It was LotR before there was a LotR. VERY dramatic - gods, giants, dwarves, valkeries, magic swords, ring of power, hat (helm) of disguise, love potion, rainbow bridge... its all there. Plus the whole thing is 15 HOURS long, so it will stand up to the longest of gaming sessions! I was playing the DVD (that's right baby, video included) when my players came over for our last gaming session. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to appreciate it (curses). My one buddy hates TV - I'll try going with just the audio next time. Really though, anything by Wagner is awesome. The Flying Dutchman has a scene were a bunch of townspeople try to coax the Dutchmans sailors onto land for a party they are having, only to find out the sailors a ghosts - damned to sail the seas. Lohengrin and Parisfal are also very dramatic. Remember, most of Wagners operas are drawn from mythologies and legend. They are all very dark.

Another great one is the last act of Berlioz's - The Damnation of Faust. The scene depicts Faust racing on horseback into Hell. He thinks he's pursuing his love, but he's really riding through ghosts into a host of demons. The scene ends with the demon chorus singing a song in gibberish... very cool.

Mozart's Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote) has alot of fantasy (although its more of a "fun and light" opera compared to Wagner).

There is also two great scenes in Massanets Don Quixote. One where he thinks the windmills are giants and the other when he (*SPOILER AHEAD*) dies at the end. :weep:

Wow, I realized I just dorked out big time here. Oh well, I wrote it so I may as well post it. If you have any other opera questions, you know who to ask :D Anyone else know any good opera scenes that would fit the bill?
Neely
03-16-05, 06:41 AM I didn't really liked the D&D cd that much. It was okay, but there's much better stuff out there to use.

Several good movie soundtracks have already been named I like to use. Also the OST of Van Helsing is great for a D&D adventure.

As for games, I've only got a couple of Baldurs Gate songs and they are somewhat short. I also agree the WarCraft 3 soundtrack is great but even greater is the World Of Warcraft soundtrack. It has really great city themes, which is more than welcome when your players enter a big city.
Crazy Elf Witch
03-16-05, 07:48 AM LotR soundtracks, Pirates of the Carabbean, Conan, Gladiator, Chronicles of Riddick, Escaflowne (the movie), King Arthur (2004), Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan, Mothman Prophecies (spooky), The Man in the Iron Mask, Final Fantasy Concert 20022002 orchestra CD (you can't just let it run, because of the talking in between tracks).

As for individual songs: Call to Courage (Ladder 49), Theme to Hunt for the Red Octobre, Theme to Robin Hood: Prince of Themes, Hummel Gets the Rockets (The Rock... actually the whole st is pretty good.) Flute and Lute songs from Record of Lodoss wars, any nature effect such as Rain, Thunder, Wind, Wolves Howling, Rain in a forest, Wind in a forest can really make a PC hear where he is.

Also, anything from fantasy games, Baldurs Gate II, Neverwinter Nights, Morrowind: Elder Scrolls, Lineage II...
True Cavalier
03-16-05, 08:19 AM Most of the tracks from films mentioned above, plus music from Baldur's Gate (I&II), Icewind Dale (I&II), King Arthur and more.
MegaFreggle
03-16-05, 09:05 AM if there is gonna be music in the sessions (depends on the mood of the players), I use the LotR soundtracks, NWN/ Diablo II soundtracks and Celtic/ Ambient music (some Ayreon songs, Enya, Celtic Circle CD's etc etc)

It gives the mood in non-combat (encounters), and during combat the music is either off or were listening to "heavier" parts :)
Judging Eagle
03-16-05, 09:06 AM For a straight down and dirty dungeun crawl, the Dungeoun Keeper Soundtrack is great, I'm not sure on DK2 though, I've never popped it in the cd player though i've got it around somewhere.
Maladaar
03-18-05, 05:53 AM Is this the link for BG that was talked about?

Baldur's Gate (http://www.bioware.com/games/baldurs_gate/other_multimedia/sound/)

Any links to music from DK2, NWN and so forth would be greatly appreciated.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Baron Stoonir Fel 03-08-05, 06:58 PM	I have found that having some background music, espicially with the use of a remote to accent what is going on in the session can be a real good investment. I have had such sucess with it that i have had requrests for burned cds full of whatever random music i decide to use for each section. And because the songs tend to have certain tones and beats to them the players find that they are able to get more into the game mentally and thus have more fun. A list of what i am usually playing: Action scenes: Streamline (system of a down), goodbye (SR-71), Reise Reise (Rammstein), Opening Sequence (Final Fantasy VIII), Tenth Man Down (Nightwish). Calm secenes: Final Fantasy Theme Music, daft punk, piano, ambient So what is everyone else listening to?
LordSin 03-08-05, 07:10 PM	http://www.midnightsyndicate.com/dd.htm 'Nuff said.
Denihilist 03-08-05, 07:13 PM	I listen to the Warcraft 3 and Diablo 2 soundtracks they really set the mood.
Otto the Bugbear 03-08-05, 07:16 PM	Many movie soundtracks have great mood music for D&D. The ones I use most often are... Conan the Barbarian soundtrack Bram Stoker's Dracula soundtrack Braveheart soundtrack LotR soundtracks Other than that, some good rock and roll fills the rest of the playlist. Cheers Otto :)
Johnny3D3D 03-08-05, 07:20 PM	"Down To The River To Pray" by Alison Kraus is a good song for a holy song; it works well if your party is in a church or some other similar setting. "This Is War" by Smile Empty Soul seems to set a good tone for a build up to a conflict. Also, the song performed by Breaking Benjamin on the soundtrack for Halo 2 seems to work well. Oh, and one more I like is a song called "Whatever" by Our Lady Peace.
FineasBoggs 03-08-05, 07:39 PM	Personally I use the musics from Neverwinter Nights and Baldur's Gate. It's funny when one of the players says,"Hey, I know this, it's when....."
Fixxxer 03-08-05, 09:12 PM	I don't generally have background music during my games unless the players specifically ask for it. I do, however, utilize a lot of music while I brainstorm and design game-related material. I agree that Midnight Syndicate is awesome. I've got all of their CDs. The soundtracks to Conan the Barbarian, Conan the Destroyer, Gladiator and Pirates of the Carribean all make for good all-around music. The soundtracks to Children of Dune, Dune, The Passion of the Christ and Blackhawk Down all make for really interesting desert-style music (my homebrew is 30% desert terrain). The soundtrack to Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain as well as the CDs Karma (by Delerium) and The Box (by Orbital) make for really good "people" music. What I mean by this is that I find they're best utilized when I'm working on city creation, inter-army conflicts or possibly political ideas. For soft, "feel-good" background music, I like to use the Soundtrack to the game Myth 3. Sometimes, I use a really nice Chant CD I have, but since I also play it to help me sleep when my insomnia kicks in, it can occassionally be a detriment (as it makes me tired).
Laranis Callirr 03-08-05, 09:16 PM	I use, and have played with the following soundtracks: - Neverwinter Nights - Silver (the game) - Baldur's Gate II - Conan the Barbarian - Gladiator I've also used a few specific albums for a couple of sessions. When my party went to the Shadow Plane, I used the soundtrack from the movie Solaris , and when they were in the Dire Woods, the soundtrack from Phone Booth . The Solaris soundtrack was very well recieved, I must say. :D
Black Knight Geno 03-15-05, 01:55 PM	I personally perfer music that scares the PC, like 'Let the Bodies Hit the Floor' (PCs have learned this DOES NOT apply to the villians) :evillaugh
Tazi Swiftblade 03-15-05, 02:32 PM	Most anything by Hawkwind The first three Blue Oyster Cult albums Hell, they both co-wrote songs with Michael Moorcock. How much more D&D appropriate can you get?
lifespeed 03-15-05, 03:05 PM	I have a big honkin' playlist I created for a steampunk game I never ran that I let play in the background at my last session. There were times that the mucis didn't fit the scene at all, but it didn't seem to really hurt it any either. It's eight and a half hours long or so and consists of: Pretty much all of Fellowship of the ring, the Count of Monte Cristo, the 3-disc import Chrono Trigger soundtrack, Sleepy Hollow and some stuff from Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, Braveheart, the Bourne Identity, and Serial Experiments Lain, plus the tracks they released on the WotC site from Sharn: City of Towers. Really great stemapunk music, but pretty good for D&D too. Here's a question though, how does everybody handle their music? I just let the playlist go the other day and that seemed to work, but I really want to figure out a good way to trigger certain tracks for certain scenes without having to get up and walk over to the CD player or the computer. Any suggestions?
MasterRookie 03-15-05, 03:19 PM	This makes me think of the adjustable light I have. Its really great for simulating the amount of light in an area and adds some realism.
ShadowDragon8685 03-15-05, 03:40 PM	Depends on what your group's like. Also depends on what the mood is, too. Obviously, thrash rock is not going to be right for seducing the princess, but it might be what the doc ordered for the fight with the boss. Personally, since I play over OpenRPG, I just ajust the music on my computer on the fly, to fit what I'm feeling for the current situation. In a fight? Maybe some of the battle music from NWN. It could just as easily be some thrash metal, or some 16 Volt, or some Nightwish.
Dreaming_in_the_void 03-15-05, 03:42 PM	I tend to go with classical and instrumental scores. Often soundtracks. Ennio Morricone has been my favorite gaming music for the past month or so.
Greldinard 03-15-05, 03:44 PM	Normaly I don't use music, their is noice enough with four players. However, I once did a not so serious adventure heavely based on Diablo I. I played the game's music when they entered the dungeon. I added to the admosphere.
Ekranoplan 03-15-05, 03:47 PM	I use Diablo 2, it can pretty much go with anything unless you are in a nice happy town, Baldur's Gate II sound track is great, especially the tavern music! Escaflowne for big, epic battles. Just some generic combat music I got from a friend. And then there is a myriad of other music for combat, being in a town, big city, creepy dungeon crawl, et cetera that I have pulled from various games and movies that I use. All in all, I probably have about 19 hours of music. And then we all have random music we sometiems put in when we dont feel like ( or care) about back round music. This can consist of anything from Hungarian techno to barbarian black metal ( or even just metal) J-pop and everything in between. Basically, anything. Kamelot and Bal-Sagoth are two great metal bands for the purpose of fantasy. Oh, if anyone wants the Diablo 2 or Baldur's Gate II soundtrack let me know and I shall post the links.
Dreaming_in_the_void 03-15-05, 03:53 PM	Oh, if anyone wants the Diablo 2 or Baldur's Gate II soundtrack let me know and I shall post the links. Please do, assuming that doing so doesn't break any sort of copyright laws.
Ekranoplan 03-15-05, 05:19 PM	I dont think it should, they were officially released. Diablo 2 http://www.diabloii.net/files/sounds.shtml#d2xbliz It would seem my Baldur's Gate II link is not working, but I first got the link from the BioWare forums so that would be a good place to look. The thing about Baldur's Gate II sound tracks is that they are all very short (few exceed 2 minutes in length) so you would have to lengthen them (atleast I felt the need to). Not exactly the most complex thing to do, provided you are enlightened in the ways of the machine. Ofcourse, you dont really need to do anything like I described, just my personal preference.
prosopis 03-15-05, 07:12 PM	For those of you who are operatically inclined, the easy answer is: Wagner's Ring Cycle. It was LotR before there was a LotR. VERY dramatic - gods, giants, dwarves, valkeries, magic swords, ring of power, hat (helm) of disguise, love potion, rainbow bridge... its all there. Plus the whole thing is 15 HOURS long, so it will stand up to the longest of gaming sessions! I was playing the DVD (that's right baby, video included) when my players came over for our last gaming session. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to appreciate it (curses). My one buddy hates TV - I'll try going with just the audio next time. Really though, anything by Wagner is awesome. The Flying Dutchman has a scene were a bunch of townspeople try to coax the Dutchmans sailors onto land for a party they are having, only to find out the sailors a ghosts - damned to sail the seas. Lohengrin and Parisfal are also very dramatic. Remember, most of Wagners operas are drawn from mythologies and legend. They are all very dark. Another great one is the last act of Berlioz's - The Damnation of Faust. The scene depicts Faust racing on horseback into Hell. He thinks he's pursuing his love, but he's really riding through ghosts into a host of demons. The scene ends with the demon chorus singing a song in gibberish... very cool. Mozart's Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote) has alot of fantasy (although its more of a "fun and light" opera compared to Wagner). There is also two great scenes in Massanets Don Quixote. One where he thinks the windmills are giants and the other when he (SPOILER AHEAD) dies at the end. :weep: Wow, I realized I just dorked out big time here. Oh well, I wrote it so I may as well post it. If you have any other opera questions, you know who to ask :D Anyone else know any good opera scenes that would fit the bill?
Neely 03-16-05, 06:41 AM	I didn't really liked the D&D cd that much. It was okay, but there's much better stuff out there to use. Several good movie soundtracks have already been named I like to use. Also the OST of Van Helsing is great for a D&D adventure. As for games, I've only got a couple of Baldurs Gate songs and they are somewhat short. I also agree the WarCraft 3 soundtrack is great but even greater is the World Of Warcraft soundtrack. It has really great city themes, which is more than welcome when your players enter a big city.
Crazy Elf Witch 03-16-05, 07:48 AM	LotR soundtracks, Pirates of the Carabbean, Conan, Gladiator, Chronicles of Riddick, Escaflowne (the movie), King Arthur (2004), Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan, Mothman Prophecies (spooky), The Man in the Iron Mask, Final Fantasy Concert 20022002 orchestra CD (you can't just let it run, because of the talking in between tracks). As for individual songs: Call to Courage (Ladder 49), Theme to Hunt for the Red Octobre, Theme to Robin Hood: Prince of Themes, Hummel Gets the Rockets (The Rock... actually the whole st is pretty good.) Flute and Lute songs from Record of Lodoss wars, any nature effect such as Rain, Thunder, Wind, Wolves Howling, Rain in a forest, Wind in a forest can really make a PC hear where he is. Also, anything from fantasy games, Baldurs Gate II, Neverwinter Nights, Morrowind: Elder Scrolls, Lineage II...
True Cavalier 03-16-05, 08:19 AM	Most of the tracks from films mentioned above, plus music from Baldur's Gate (I&II), Icewind Dale (I&II), King Arthur and more.
MegaFreggle 03-16-05, 09:05 AM	if there is gonna be music in the sessions (depends on the mood of the players), I use the LotR soundtracks, NWN/ Diablo II soundtracks and Celtic/ Ambient music (some Ayreon songs, Enya, Celtic Circle CD's etc etc) It gives the mood in non-combat (encounters), and during combat the music is either off or were listening to "heavier" parts :)
Judging Eagle 03-16-05, 09:06 AM	For a straight down and dirty dungeun crawl, the Dungeoun Keeper Soundtrack is great, I'm not sure on DK2 though, I've never popped it in the cd player though i've got it around somewhere.
Maladaar 03-18-05, 05:53 AM	Is this the link for BG that was talked about? Baldur's Gate (http://www.bioware.com/games/baldurs_gate/other_multimedia/sound/) Any links to music from DK2, NWN and so forth would be greatly appreciated.